Artistic Nudes - Good or Bad?

I have been on DeviantArt (www.deviantart.com) for 7 years. I spend a lot of time surfing the images. I'll admit it... I'm addicted to art and beauty.

Sometimes I am amazed by the things that are posted. I can't say that I am not judgmental - I am. I have noticed that this is something that comes as you get older - so it's not really my fault. There are a lot of beautiful images and a great deal of beauty to be had. Yet, there is a lot of them that I just don't get. There is also is a lot that I think has absolutely NO artistic value.

It all started with a couple photos of men's and women's genitalia. It's not that I don't think that there is any artistic merit to images of this type.. I have seen several awesome photos of that... area... that were beautiful and erotic and ARTISTIC. However, these images were just disgusting – honestly.

Let me quantify that statement. I am all for porn. I love porn. I REALLY love porn. But this is a site for art. Seriously. I find it disgusting that some people will post what qualifies as pornography under the guise of art.

Now, I am not against genitalia. I am terribly fond of my own. There are a lot of people whose genitalia I would like to get to know better - much better, in fact.

It's not that photos of isolated genitalia aren't artistic. Georgia O'Keefe's flower paintings are a sterling example of this – artistically depicted genitals. Judy Chicago's “The Dinner Party” is another example.

Why? Because man is a sexual creature. The lines and curves of the human form are the basis for everything mankind has ever considered beautiful. It can be seen in every form of art. It's mostly in visual arts, but it can be seen elsewhere, as well - architecture, aviation, automobiles and even literature. Given the primal temperament of the human mind and our visual nature – it is shocking that the artistic nude is not a more prevalent art form in our modern world. After all, isn't the purpose of art to bring some small measure of joy and pleasure into our lives?

When is it art? When is it not? This is the penultimate question. No other artistic statement is more charged with more political, personal and emotional baggage than the nude.

Collin's English Dictionary defines pornography as “writings, pictures, films, etc, designed to stimulate sexual excitement.”

So, intent is a determining factor. Is the piece intended to share beauty? Is it to titillate? Is it supposed to evoke? Is it supposed to provoke? Is it a piece of erotica intended to be enjoyed for the beauty of its mysterious desire and sensuality? Is this just a piece of trash intended  to indulge our baser nature? Does the nudity even have anything to do with the ultimate message and intent of the piece? The problem is that we will never really know what the artist intended. Even if they explain themselves, we really only have our own interpretation of what we are seeing. We view the piece through the lens of our own experience.

It's entirely subjective. One person's artistic nude is another person's horrifying display of pornographic material. There is no objective way to define it. Fortunately, most of the world has made a conscious choice to be against censorship.

My vexation comes from the fact that, because we fight this censorship in our world, we are subjected to the less than artistic depictions of nudity. We are shown pornography, smut or just photos of someone's junk in lieu of art.

It needs to stop; but there's really no way to control it. I have spoken to quite a few of the people that have posted that kind of thing. I have asked them, "Was your intent to be pornographic?" There have been a few that have answered in the affirmative, but most have said that they were trying to share beauty.

The internet strikes again. I already covered this one, so I won't go back into that. However, I do feel that the access to inexpensive digital imaging technology and a lack of peer review and artistic education has made the genre of artistic nudes suffer. (HINT: don't use an on-board flash. I know your camera has one, but it only makes your images look cheap and unprofessional. Light it separately and disable that flash.)

How do we fix it? I don't think we can. Every one thinks their photography, painting, drawing, sculpture, etc. is exceptional - so we can't rely on self regulation. We know better than to hire and appoint individuals to judge what is art and what is not - the government messes everything else up, so why not this? We can't leave it to the general public - most of them encourage mediocrity and a large percentage of the remainder is just trollish. So, I guess we can't fix the problem.

The only comforting thought I have is that those of us photographing, painting, drawing and sculpting nudes aren't going anywhere.

A joke for you

 Cowboy: "That your dog?"
Indian: "Yep."

Cowboy: "Mind if I speak to him?"
Indian: "Dog no talk."

Cowboy: "Hey dog, how's it going?"
Dog: "Doin' all right."

Indian: (Look of shock!)

Cowboy: "Is this Indian your owner?" (Pointing at the Indian.)
Dog: "Yep."

Cowboy: "How's he treating you?"
Dog: "Real good. He walks me twice a day, feeds me great food and takes
me to the lake once a week to play."

Indian: (Look of total disbelief.)

Cowboy: "Mind if I talk to your horse?"
Indian: "Horse no talk."

Cowboy: "Hey horse, how's it going?"
Horse: "Cool."

Indian: (Extreme look of shock!)

Cowboy: "Is this your owner?" (Pointing to the Indian.)
Horse: "Yep."

Cowboy: "How's he treating you?"
Horse: "Pretty good, thanks for asking, he rides me, brushes me down
often and keeps me in a lean-to to protect me from the weather."

Indian: (Look of total amazement.)

Cowboy: "Mind if I talk to your sheep?"
Indian: "Sheep lie!"

Me a Day: Dread

So... Today is the big day.

I start the Me a Day project.

I have a sense of foreboding... You see, I have this thing. I have to be clean. It's part of my brain thing. That's right. I have a brain thing. I am a crazy person. I am so crazy, in fact, that I am on disability for it.

Diabetes... Mixed Bipolar... Asperger's Syndrome (VERY mild, and very high functioning)... and OCD.

I bathe at least three times daily... I don't have a choice, I have to.

So, today I bathed in preparation for my first self portrait. I was clean, shower fresh and ready. I looked in the mirror and realized that I also needed to shave. So I got to it. As I was trimming up my goatee, one my cats pounced on my foot with the might, power and instinct of her ancestors. You know... the lions of the savannah, the tigers of the jungles stalking their prey – their natural enemies – TOES!

The toes, however, had a different idea and removed themselves from the vicinity. That took everything else off balance and my trimmer went right through the 'tee. So... for the start of my Me a Day project, I am clean shaven... for the first time in years...

It feels weird.

***EDIT***
It's done... Here's the first one

http://flic.kr/p/aDcDwo

Me a day

“If it is important... you will find a away.

If it is not... you will find an excuse.”

I am trepidatious. Over the last couple of weeks, I have been procrastinating on something that I actually feel is very important. Two things actually. Actually, let's make that three... four... there's a lot.

I am artistic. That is not to say I am an artist. I don't have the dedication to any one medium to be successful in it. I am a film maker – I write, shoot, edit, sound design and the like. I am a photographer – I try to capture beauty as I see it. I am a novelist – I write novels (I have three done and several others in the works).

The last few weeks I have several projects that I have meant to work on but I just haven't. One film, two (technically three) writing projects and a couple photo projects.

I have meant to start this blog. I really have meant to write a blog for years. Long ago, I was a pundit on a site called Shmeng (www.shmeng.com). I wrote a column titled “Lemmings on Parade.” Due to many of the members moving on, some interpersonal drama and an influx of trollish new blood, the site died. For a while I was fine with it. Then I realized that writing down my opinion and commentary on the status of the world was a catharsis. While a lot of people enjoyed reading it... I needed to write it. I needed to get it out. As I used to say in my column - “If you aren't outraged, you aren't paying attention.” I have put off doing it because, frankly, I am not sure that it is more than just an exercise in vanity. At my age, however, I can afford a little vanity.

I have a couple novels that I REALLY need to get back to. I have sent them to people to be work shopped. The response has been positive. While the people who read my first works assure me that they are being honest. I find myself wondering if they are just being nice. Submitting your work is one of the hardest things you can do. You put your intellectual soul out there to be read and judged. So, honestly, I've been scared to submit my first novel “Death Cramps My Style” for publication. That, however is changing. I will be submitting it for consideration to many publishers, and hopefully my novel can see the light of day. I also realized that I am not writing these things for other people, but for me, so I will be getting back to writing on those other books as well.

I have a screen play that I have been ruminating on since halloween day and I think it is really good... but it is more of the same genre... I seem to only be able to write horror and comedy. I want to write a great movie. Something that will win Oscars and awards and be talked about – leave a lasting mark on the world. Problem is... I am not really sure that I can do that... I WANT TO. I REALLY WANT TO. I WANT TO DO THIS MORE THAN I HAVE WORDS TO DESCRIBE. But I don't think I have the ability to write it. I mean, someone that once said that I was “destined to be the next Ed Wood.” At first I took that as an insult. I mean, Ed Wood is widely considered to be one of Hollywood's worst directors. Guess what... no matter what you think about his skill... you have heard of him. He is well known, and he lived his life making films... living his dream. So... from now on... just call me Ed, bitches.

“Framing the Subject” and “Beautiful in Death” are a couple of the current photography projects that I am working on. These are relatively massive undertakings. Each of them requires 30-100 models to complete. One, “Beautiful in Death” is incredibly morbid, which makes it difficult to find models for. “Framing the Subject” has been just as difficult to find. The reasons are odd... some people don't want to have revealing photos taken of them... and others want to argue with me... I am very open and make every shoot a collaborative process... but what I have envisioned for this shoot has a very specific theme and tone and is not open to much interpretation... Still... I AM GOING TO MAKE THIS HAPPEN.

I've been afraid of failure, but no more... I am the biggest thing in any room and I don't back down... I sure as hell won't back down from myself.

Lastly, I come to the reason for this post... I normally try to be different... I try not to do an idea thatI see everyone else doing, but I saw a photo essay that impressed me and brought inspiration to my door. I will be taking a self portrait a day for an entire year.

I told myself I was going to do this three weeks ago... It didn't happen. I've been scared. First off, this is an INCRERDIBLE commitment. I KNOW that the only person I would let down is me... and that terrifies me. Secondly... I hate photos of myself... and I HONESTLY think that this will add an edge to the work that I don't see in a lot of work. That is not to say that it will be good... but starting tomorrow, I will be taking a photograph of myself every day for one year... 366 days... It's a leap year.

Maybe I should wait.

NO! Tomorrow!

It starts

Blogging has always seemed to be a bit of a vanity thing to me. Oh, don't get me wrong. There are some blogs that I read with devotion. (http://hyperboleandahalf.blogspot.com/ is just one). 

You see, the internet is (in my opinion) one of the greatest blessings to the human race. Yet, at the same time is one of the contributing factors of the downfall of society. No, really. 

Let me explain. 

Art comes in many forms. Boiled down to its essence, art is the capture or portrayal of beauty. Art requires a peculiar and rare kind of person to create. These individuals are rare... occasional... unique and to be cherished.

The problem is... everyone thinks they are this kind of person. They think they are rare, unique and able to create/capture beauty. My grandfather said something on this topic to me once. “We all want to be unique, a one of a kind. I got news for ya kiddo. You ARE unique. Just like everyone else.”

Pre-1982 (the year that the TCP/IP was standardized) we had no internet. Shitty artists, writers, photographers, etc. were limited to inflicting their horribleness (thank you Joss Whedon, for introducing me to this awesome word) only upon those near them. If they were lucky, they could get into a 'Zine and have it spread around a small sliver of the population all over the local geographical area.

Then came the internet. At first, it took a certain amount of technological savvy to surf the web. You have to meet a certain IQ standard and have a certain skill set to get online. It took some study and know-how to build a web page. The internet was a haven to geeks and was viewed (wrongly) as a retreat for some kind of intellectual elite.

Eventually, the internet became plug and play. That means anyone can do it. It's idiot proof.

There's a problem. Every time something is made idiot proof – they make a new and improved idiot.

That brings us to today. The internet allows for the near instantaneous and free exchange of ideas and collaboration. It allows artists and writers to share their work, get immediate feedback. It allows resources to be acquired and shared instantly.

As an independent film maker, we use the internet a great deal. I get sound effects, stock footage, royalty free music as we edit. My partner and I will put our work up and use it for test audiences and feedback. We use it as a tool.

Now, before I continue, I will state that I am proud of my work. My latest short film took an award in the Fear Fete International Horror Film Festival (www.fearfete.com) lending an air of legitimacy to my work. I don't believe that I am an amazing artist. Hell. For all I know, I could be one of the people that I am complaining about.

All of this was just to say the following: The internet has allowed these people... crappy artists, horrible poets, shitty photographers... Idiots, morons, and the people that have ruined politics, the planet, the economy, movies, television and the world... It lets them out into the world with their borderline mentally handicapped scribblings and ramblings. They slap it out there for the entire world to see.

The problem is, at it's root, is that most of it SUCKS. Really... it does. In today's PC (Politically Correct) World, it's considered bad form to critique people if their work sucks. I will take the on the mantle of the offensive guy... Most of it sucks. Your mom should have told you to color inside the lines. Your teacher should have told you that your emo poetry is just horrible. Someone should have told you that taking the same damn photo as everyone else (Camera phone held aloft shooting a pic down your shirt, Camera phone in the mirror in the bath room, of your eye) isn't art... it's just... shit. Remaking the same movies, is bullshit. Your writing... it probably sucks...

This crapulence was once contained in your home or your local coffee shop... The internet has brought it into my home.

Thank you interwebs... you are my hero.